NFI Crab Council hires Indonesian fishery expert as new sustainability envoy

The National Fisheries Institute’s (NFI) Crab Council has found its new Crab Sustainability Envoy in Abdul Ghofar, Ph.D., an Indonesian fisheries mainstay of more than 30 years.

Formerly referred to as the Asia Liaison, the NFI Crab Council’s Crab Sustainability Envoy is based in Southeast Asia and plays a critical role in tracking and enacting FIP benchmarks within the Crab Council sponsored fisheries of Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam, according to NFI. The role is funded by the Walton Family Foundation. 

Ghofar has an advanced degree in marine fisheries biology from the University of Wales and has served as an advisor and educator on the blue swimming crab supply chain. He has published scientific articles on the species and industry. In his career, Ghofar worked with nonprofit and corporate partners including USAID, NOAA, FAO, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank on the application of science-based sustainability models into real-world practice. Ghofar is well-positioned to coordinate the Crab Council’s projects in Southeast Asia, being a native of Indonesia and having traveled extensively throughout Southeast Asia, said NFI.

“The NFI Crab Council has become the focal point for crab sustainability,” said Ghofar, in a news release. “I am excited to join an industry-led initiative with a clear sustainability commitment and the funding and dedication to affect immediate and lasting improvements. As the Crab Council’s Sustainability Envoy, I will bridge importer with supplier to help realize their shared sustainability goals.”

Ghofar’s hire is being viewed as a “decisive moment for the sustainability group,” according to Crab Council Executive Director Ed Rhodes.

“Dr. Ghofar is a standout in fishery improvement,” Rhodes said. "The wide-range of his works and their specific successes demonstrate a change agent whose future actions will benefit the Crab Council and the whole blue swimming crab sustainability movement.”

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